Recent content by CONatureBoy

I have a 1:9 26" barrel on my 280 AI. It shoots the Berger 180-grain VLD-H bullet at 3,000 fps with the right handload recipe. The Berger stability calculator (https://bergerbullets.com/twist-rate-calculator/) says the bullet is very well stabilized with my twist rate at that speed. Suggest...

I have a 300 RUM with a 28" Krieger barrel with 1:9 twist and a standard Palma contour on a blueprinted Rem. 700. Jewell trigger, Nightforce NXS scope. It shoots 199-grain Hammers into one ragged hole at 200 yards. About the same with SMK 220s and Berger 230s. Berger 210 VLDs nearly as good...

I get over 3,000 fps from my 280 AI with a 27" barrel shooting 180-grain Berger VLD-H in front of about 62 grains of RL-26. (I still see people posting on this subject elsewhere. Lots of posts mention RL-26 for this bullet and cartridge.)

I have never had any brass problems with the 300 RUM. I use high-quality brass: Norma, Lapua, or Peterson.

That explains it. Sounds like a terrific cartridge.

Which bullet? COAL? Pretty zippy muzzle velocities!

Yeah, QuickLoad estimates for a 264 Win Mag with a 26" barrel and a COAL of 3.400": N570 73.5 grains, 98.0% fill, 3,098 fps RL33 73.9 grains, 99.9% fill, 3,087 fps LRT 74.6 grains, 101.9% fill, 3,075 fps

Reloder 33 is the fastest (in my experience) with the 156 EOL in the 264 WM, and LRT is a close second.

My notes tell me I measured my 156-grain load at 3,150 fps with no pressure signs. So 3,261 sounds a little hot, but by no means totally implausible. This caliber deserves a revival.

By the way, I've switched to RL-33 or Ramshot LRT for the 156 EOL in the 264 Win Mag. MV around 3100 fps for either.

I shot a spring black bear this year with the 230 OTM, 120 yards, 3,000 fps muzzle (300 RUM, 28", 1:9"). Center of the center, as they say. Back half of the jacket under the far-side skin, core exited. Bear fell, rolled, got up and walked about 30 yards, expired. Lot of bullet for a spring...

I shoot the 230 OTM from my 300 RUM at 3,000 fps (28" barrel). Shot a black bear with it this spring. Back half of the jacket under the far-side hide, lead core went all the way through. Bear fell and rolled where he stood, got back up about 30 yards downhill and walked maybe 30 yards before...

That sounds like good terminal performance to me, at a reasonable BC. I got to the 0.0465" number starting from a paper by a military terminal-ballistics expert advising law-enforcement sharpshooters about the use of SMKs for antipersonnel purposes. He experimented with drilling a .308" SMK...

(You can see in the photo that it's a very modest increase in interior meplat diameter.)

That's my hope. I experimented with exactly the same treatment on the Berger 190-grain target bullet, shooting it into 10% gel block at 100 yards (same muzzle velocity). The gel block showed 1.5" of penetration followed by the sort of wound channel you'd normally get from a VLD Hunting Berger...